Of Anger and Textbooks
by BK Love-ah
Summary: Lacey returns to Hogwarts for her third year. She is unsettled by the escape of Sirius Black, and also has other personal problems to deal with. Third story of 7, telling of Lacey's magical journey. I DO NOT OWN HP, only Lacey and her family. R&R!
1. A Bumpy Road Ahead

_**And here we are again, everyone! I hope you enjoy chapter 1!**_

**Disclaimer- I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER! I ONLY OWN LACEY AND HER FAMILY!**

**0ooooooooooooooo0**

I opened my eyes. The wind was blowing my hair into my face as I sat up. The grass was smooth underneath me, and the lake was as pure as ever.

This field behind my house was one of my favorite places to go during the summer. Actually, come to think of it, it was one of my favorite places to go at any time of the year. In the summer, the lake was warm enough to swim in, and I could just lie in the grass for hours. When autumn arrived, I watched the colored leaves sprinkle down like grains of pepper.

During the winter, the small hillside was one of the best places to get on a sled and slide down. You could also put on skis and go onto the frozen lake. And the spring was absolutely lovely. There was an elm tree in the middle of the field, and it would always bloom so beautifully in the springtime. I used to love catching the petals in my hand when the wind blew them off of the tree.

One of the best parts about it was the fact that Arabella used to love it there as well. We have several pictures of her running in the grass as a toddler, swimming in the lake as a child, and sledding down the hill as a teenager. So whenever I was down there, I could almost feel her with me.

"Lacey!" Mum was calling me from the house. I instantly got to my feet.

"Coming!" I ran back to the house.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

After going through the back door and into the dining room, I found my mother. She was smiling at me. "What is it?"

"Guess what came in the mail today?" It didn't take me very long to figure it out.

"My letter!" Mum took my Hogwarts letter out from behind her back and gave it to me. I struggled to open it as Mum chuckled.

"Try not to rip the letter, sweetheart." I grinned at her. Finally, the letter was open. As I took in the long list of required supplies for this year, all of the joy came flooding back._ It's time again! I'm going back! _

"So when should we-"

"Shh!" Mum suddenly put a finger up. Looking over at our active radio, she turned it up. I listened to the voice that was speaking.

"_...escaped from Azkaban not long ago. This is the first time this has ever occurred in our history. Sirius Black was convicted of the murders of several innocent muggles, as well as the murder of Peter Pettigrew. The Ministry advises you to not panic, for this notorious criminal will soon be captured. In the meantime, if anyone has seen Black, please contact an official immediately. Now, onto the local weather..." _

Mum switched off the radio. Her face had gone white.

"Who's Sirius Black, Mum?" She looked down at me grimly.

"He was put into Azkaban twelve years ago," she said.

"For murder?"

"Yes, but there's more. He was a supporter of the Dark Lord. When Lily and James Potter were threatened by You-Know-Who, they went into hiding, you remember?" I nodded. "Well, only a few people knew where they were. One person who did know was Peter Pettigrew. Another was Sirius Black." I knew what she was going to say before she said it.

"He turned them in, didn't he?" Mum nodded.

"Yes. He did. And when Peter discovered his plan, he tried to warn the Potters. But Black killed him before he could reach them." My blood ran cold.

"That's horrible! Wait, do you mean that, if Black hadn't told You-Know-Who where Harry's parents were, they would still be alive?" After a long pause, Mum nodded. I looked down. _Oh, God. A killer on the loose...this year will go by __**quite**__ smoothly. _

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When we got to Diagon Alley, I couldn't help but feel uneasy. A lot of people looked grim, probably due to the numerous "Wanted" posters of Sirius Black that were hanging everywhere. I stopped to look at the picture on one of them. He had shaggy hair and a mustache. The look on his face was that of a maniac...

"Lacey?" Dad shook my shoulders. I looked up at him and smiled.

"Oh. I'm fine." He rubbed my back affectionately.

"They'll catch him, sweetheart. Don't worry." I nodded. We went into Flourish and Blotts to buy this year's school books. One book scared me out of my wits. It was called The Monster Book of Monsters. It looked like a spider; it had hair, eight eyes, and sharp-looking fangs. _Oh well. It is Hogwarts, after all. _

After we left the store, I sat down on a bench. No sooner had Mum sat down next to me did something startling happen. The book seemed to be alive! It started snapping at me and Mum. I started screaming. Mum didn't scream, but I could tell she was fearful. Then, the book suddenly calmed down and closed its jaws again. We looked up at Dad, who was holding his wand.

"There," he said contently. Seeing him do that made me think of something that Malfoy had said last year, about my father, "never being able to do real magic." _Well,_ I thought proudly, _I suppose he was wrong, then, wasn't he?_

I was still looking aprehensively at the frightening book when I heard a very familiar voice next to me.

"Hi, Lacey." Even before my father spoke, I knew who it was.

"Neville! Good to see you, lad," Dad said. When I got to my feet and faced Neville, I nearly fell over. It seemed as if he had gotten thinner over the summer. His belly was still a bit chubby, but his face in particular wasn't as pudgy as it had been before. His hair had also grown a bit.

"Hello there, Neville," I said, smiling. Neville smiled back.

"How was your summer?"

"It was good, but I really missed school." He nodded.

"Yeah, so did I." Suddenly, Mum got up.

"Hello, Augusta," she said. I looked past Neville and saw his grandmother coming. It took every ounce of my strength to not laugh out loud. She was wearing a velvet green skirt with a matching long-sleeve top. She also had a hat with a vulture on it, and carried a bright red handbag. I smiled.

"Hello, Mrs. Longbottom." She smiled.

"Good to see you, Miss Ravensdale." She then turned to Neville with a stern look on her face. "Young man, you lost Trevor again, didn't you?"

"No," Neville said, shaking his head. "What makes you think that?" Augusta reached into her handbag and pulled out the brown toad. "Oh, **there** you are." He immediately took Trevor and put him into his pocket. Augusta looked at him and then back to me and my parents.

"We're just getting his schoolbooks now." I nodded.

"Ah," Mum said. "Well, you get back to that. We still have a few things to pick up, so..." I smiled at Neville.

"I'll see you on the train, Neville." He smiled back.

"Alright." As he and Augusta went into Flourish and Blotts, my parents and I went on to get my school robes. By the afternoon, I had everything I needed.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

That night, I was holding Belle in my arms. I used to like sitting in my room with her. It gave me time to think about any problems I was having, or about my life in general. As I stroked the top of Belle's head, my thoughts wandered back to the escape of Sirius Black. _I can't believe he did that,_ I thought to myself. _Does Harry know about it?_ A part of me hoped he didn't. Otherwise, he might have wanted to go hunt Black down. I exhaled deeply and sat back against my pillow. _Oh, well. Somehow, everything will be alright. It's Hogwarts! What could go wrong?_

**0oooooooooooooooooooo0**

_**I hope everyone liked it! I'll have the next chapter up soon =D**_


	2. Dark Confusion

_**Enjoy!**_

**Cookie05-** **I'm so glad you like my stories! =D I'll do my best to update as often as possible for you.**

**loveforpotter-** **Oh...my...GOD. Thank you SO MUCH for letting me know about that. I was SO EMBARASSED! But I fixed that up. Anyway, thanks for your support! I'm really happy that you like my series! Let me know what you think of ****OPAT**** =D**

**0ooooooooooooooo0**

"Lacey!" After climbing onto the Hogwarts Express, I turned back to Mum. She smiled at me and blew a kiss. I blew one back to her, and to Dad. He smiled and put and arm around Mum's shoulder. After I was in, I leaned out one of the windows and waved.

"Bye! I love you!" Soon, my parents were out of sight. I pulled myself out of the window and went into an empty compartment. No sooner had I put a disguised Belle onto the bench next to me did I hear the door slide open. I looked up to see Neville looking at me, clutching Trevor in his hands.

"Hello," he said, smiling nervously. I smiled. As he walked through the door, his foot got caught on the threshold. He fell down with a yelp. I bent down to help him up.

"Goodness! Careful next time, Neville." As he sat down on the bench across from me, I suddenly felt something on my foot. I bent down to scoop up Trevor and hand him to Neville.

"Thanks," he said, taking the toad from me. After a fifteen-minute pause, Neville broke the silence. "So, are you looking forward to school this year?" I nodded.

"Yes, I've been looking forward to it all summer. And aren't there some new classes for third-years?"

"Yeah. There's one about magical creatures. I think there's Ancient Runes, too. Me, I'm taking Divination and Care of Magical Creatures." I smiled.

"Oh, that's what I'm taking!" He smiled back. "I was considering Ancient Runes, but I've never really been very good with history." Neville nodded understandingly.

"Same here." There was a moment of silence. "So, did you do anything interesting over the summer?" I shrugged.

"Nothing in particular."

"No visiting family members?" I shook my head.

"No. My parents were both only children. My dad's parents died when I was little, and my mum's parents are in Africa. What about you?" He shifted in his seat.

"Gran and I just ran a couple...errands. We didn't really have anyone to visit." I nodded, but inside, I knew he was lying. _He probably visited his parents._

"Well, I'm really glad it didn't rain too much."

"Yeah. Gran said that it's never-" He was cut off suddenly when the train lurched. We were both thrown from our seats and onto the ground. I cried out as my head collided with Neville's. As soon as the train had stopped, Neville got up and lifted me to my feet. Rubbing his head, he stepped towards the door. "What was that?" He was about to open the door when the train shook again, sending us both back into our seats.

"Maybe there's something wrong with the train," I suggested. "They probably-" The lights suddenly flickered out. It seemed to get a bit colder. I glanced around me, feeling very worried.

"Look!" Neville pointed at the window. When I looked, I saw that it had frosted over.

"What on earth? It's September!" What happened next is hard to describe. It was as if a dark blanket had spread out and covered everything. There was not a single happy thought in my mind. Any brightness that there was seemed to be draining away...

"There's something out there," Neville said, pointing outside the door. I looked, and sure enough, there was an enormous floating figure in the narrow hallway. I couldn't see it very well through the fogged glass, but as soon as it passed our door, my vision started going loopy on me. I heard echoes around me, and I saw wooden bars. Before I could even think about what I was seeing, there was a bright green light. Then, I was back on the train.

I vaguely heard Neville calling my name as I was back in the strange room. I looked through the bars to see several black figures. They suddenly disappeared, and I saw the body of Arabella on the ground. Before I had a chance to scream, I felt two hands shaking my shoulders. As I heard a voice calling me, I was suddenly back on the train. My eyes opened, and I saw Neville sitting next to me on my bench. He was the one holding onto my shoulders and calling my name.

"Lacey! Are you okay? What happened to you?" I was confused for a second, but then I remembered what I had just seen.

"I saw her again. Dead." Even in the dark, I could see Neville look at me with pity. He let go of me and rubbed my arm.

"You're okay now." The lights suddenly came back on. Neville got up and opened the compartment door. He obviously found someone, because he started talking. "Sir, something's wrong with my friend. Can you help?" There was a pause.

"I'll do what I can, but I can't stay long." I glanced up to see a tall man walk in. He looked like he was in his late thirties or early forties. He had a short mustache and a small beard. As he sat down across from me, he started talking. "What happened, young lady?"

"Umm..." I tried to find the right words. "Well, this...thing went by the door, and I had a hallucination." The man nodded.

"Did you pass out?"

"I'm...not sure..." Neville spoke up.

"No, she didn't. She almost did, but not completely." The man nodded. He looked back at me and smiled kindly.

"Well, don't worry. You're alright now." He reached into his pocket.

"What was that thing, sir?" He looked back at me as he took out a small bar of chocolate.

"It was one of the guards of Azkaban. They're called dementors." He broke off a piece of chocolate and handed it to me. "I have to go speak to the conductor," he said, getting up, "but eat that. It'll take the effects away." With that, he left the compartment. I took a small bite of the chocolate. He was right; I started to feel better immediately. Neville slowly sat down next to me.

"Are you okay now?" I nodded. Taking another bite, I looked down. _What on earth was that? And why did it show me my worst memory?_

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

This year, we didn't take the boats to Hogwarts. Instead, we took these carts; they had large black flaps over them due to the bad weather. I tried to see what was in front of the cart, but it was just so dark, especially with the rain. However, for a moment, I thought I heard a snort of some kind...

"Lacey?" I turned around to see that Neville was already in the cart, but was holding the door open for me. After running over and climbing into the carriage, I plopped down into a seat. As soon as the carriage started moving, it dawned on me to see who else was in there with me. There was Neville, of course, but when I saw two other friendly faces, my mouth curled up into a smile.

"Seamus! Dean, how are you?" Dean smiled at me.

"Good to see you, Lace," Seamus said. "Crazy about the weather, though. Feels like it could drown us." I nodded.

"Yes. Just that time of year, I suppose."

"Seamus was saying that it's a sign," Dean said. I turned back to Seamus.

"A sign? What do you mean?"

"Well, Sirius Black's escaped. It might be a signal that bad things are gonna happen this year." I tried to shake it off, but a part of me thought that he might be right.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

In what seemed like seconds, we were clad in our school robes and sitting in our common room. I hadn't really been able to say hello to anyone yet, because I was in such a hurry to unpack my things. Also, what Seamus had said in the cart frightened me quite a bit. After everyone had filed into the room, I saw a few more familiar faces, such as Parvati, Ron, Ginny, the twins, Hermione, and...

"Hello, Harry." He smiled at me.

"Hey, Lacey." I turned away, but then he spoke again. "Oh, by the way, I heard that you...almost blacked out. Are you alright now?" I nodded.

"Yes. I just...don't know why it happened." He nodded.

"Well, you're not alone." He stepped towards me and whispered. "I passed out completely." My eyes went wide.

"You did?" He was about to speak again, but the door suddenly opened.

"Welcome back, students," said Professor McGonagall with a smile. "It's time to go downstairs for dinner." With whispers of excitement, everyone followed the professor to the Great Hall. It was just as magnificent as ever. After all four houses were seated, Professor McGonagall conducted the Sorting Ceremony. I was very happy to see that we had gained several new Gryffindors. But it wasn't time to eat just yet. "Before the feast begins," said the professor, "Professor Flitwick's choir will sing for us." There was some scattered applause as the choir lined up in front of the room; some of them were clutching giant toads. Professor Flitwick stepped in front of them and raised his wand.

_Double, double, toil and trouble.  
>Fire burn and cauldron bubble.<br>Double, double, toil and trouble.  
>Something wicked this way comes!<em>

_Eye of newt and toe of frog,  
>wool of bat and tongue of dog,<br>Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,  
>lizard's leg and owlet's wing.<em>

_Double, double, toil and trouble.  
>Fire burn and cauldron bubble.<br>Double, double, toil and trouble.  
>Fire burn and cauldron bubble.<br>Something wicked this way comes!_

_In the cauldron boil and bake,  
>fillet of a fenny snake,<br>scale of dragon, tooth of wolf,  
>witches mummy, maw and gulf.<em>

_Double, double, toil and trouble.  
>Fire burn and cauldron bubble.<br>Double, double, toil and trouble.  
>Fire burn and cauldron bubble.<br>Double, double, toil and trouble.  
>Fire burn and cauldron bubble.<br>Something wicked this way comes!_

The room erupted with applause. The choir students left the front of the room and filed down the aisles. As they did so, Professor Dumbledore rose from his seat and stepped up to his podium. He raised his hands as he spoke.

"Welcome! Welcome to another year at Hogwarts. Now, I'd like to say a few words before we all become too befuddled by our excellent feast." My stomach growled. It had been a while since I had eaten last. "First, I'm pleased to welcome Professor R.J. Lupin, who's kindly consented to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Good luck, professor." With that, he held his hand out in the direction of the teacher's table as we started clapping. When the man stood up and took a small bow, I saw that it was the same man that helped me on the train.

"Hey," Neville whispered. "It's that man from the train!" I nodded and smiled. Then, I heard Hermione say something to Harry about chocolate. _Oh,_ I thought. _He must have helped Harry as well!_ Then, something rather unpleasant happened.

"Potter..._Potter!_" Harry turned around to look at Draco Malfoy at the table next to ours. "Is it true you fainted? I mean, you _actually_ fainted?" As he snickered with his friends, Ron tugged on Harry's shoulder.

"Shove off, Malfoy," he snapped.

"How did _he_ find out?" whispered Harry.

"Just forget it," Hermione said. Glancing over at Malfoy, I frowned. He saw me and gave me an evil sneer. I looked back up at Dumbledore.

"Our Care of Magical Creatures teacher has decided to retire in order to spend more time with his remaining limbs. Fortunately, I'm delighted to announce that his place will be taken by none other than our own Rubeus Hagrid." He raised his hand to Hagrid, who smiled nervously. I noticed Professor McGonagall nudge him with her elbow. Taking the hint, Hagrid rose to his feet, nearly knocking the teacher's table over as he did so. Practically everyone in the room except for the Slytherins burst into applause. Hermione whooped, as did Seamus.

"Alright, Hagrid!" I couldn't restrain myself. After a few moments, McGonagall pulled Hagrid back into his seat.

"Finally," Dumbledore continued, "on a more disquieting note, at the request of the Ministry of Magic, Hogwarts will, until further notice, play host to the dementors of Azkaban, until such a time as Sirius Black is captured." My blood ran cold. Everyone started muttering.

"**What?**"

"Dementors, _here?_"

"Are they mad?"

"The dementors will be stationed at every entrance to the grounds," continued Dumbledore. "Now, whilst I've been assured that their presence will not disrupt our day-to-day activities, a word of caution." He now had everyone's undivided attention. "Dementors are vicious creatures. They'll not distinguish between the one they hunt and the one who gets in their way. Therefore," he said, his voice getting grimmer, "I must warn each and every one of you to give them no reason to harm you." I gulped. "It is not in the nature of a dementor to be forgiving." I glanced fearfully at Harry, who mirrored my gaze. "But you know, happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times," said Dumbledore as he magically put out a nearby candle, "if one only remembers to turn on the light."

He put the candle back on, and with a small smile, he sat back down. The tables were suddenly filled with food. I watched everyone around me start to dig in, but my appetite was gone. I considered not eating anything, but Ron spoke up.

"Lace, you've got to eat something." I glanced at him for a moment before nodding.

"Okay." I took a small spoonful of beans and a bit of chicken. As I started nibbling at my food, Dumbledore's words came floating back. _Why would he let dementors come here? How does he know that they won't attack somebody other than Sirius Black?_

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_**I hope you enjoyed this. Next chapter will be up soon! =D**_


	3. Tea Leaves and Hippogriffs

_**Hello again, my darlings. I'm SO SO SO sorry it took me so long to update, but I've been going on a TON of college tours. Read on and enjoy!**_

**the white princess-**** Thanks! I'm so glad you like it =)**

**Cookie05-** **I like ****POA****, too! I'm happy that this chapter pleased you so :D**

**0ooooooooooooo0**

After what happened on the train, I was surprised with the amount of sleep I got that night. But it did take me awhile to fall asleep. I guess it was because I was so excited about being back. Then again, everyone else was. And at least **they** were able to sleep. But still, after a few minutes of cuddling with Belle, my eyes finally started to get heavy...

**I peered down into the gentle water of the lake. My reflection smiled back at me as I twirled the water around with my finger.**

** "Lacey!" Mum came up behind me and scooped me up. She planted a kiss on the tip of my nose. "You can't go near the water until you're older."**

** "But Mummy, why not?"**

** "You're only five. You don't know how to swim yet."**

** "Will you teach me? Pretty please?" She smiled.**

** "When you're old enough, dear."**

I smiled in my sleep. My mum was always protective of me, especially when I was younger. It's only natural that a mother wants to keep her child safe, but I think that a huge part of it had to do with her fear of losing me like she lost Arabella.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Welcome, my children."

It was our first Divination class. We were split into pairs at small tables scattered around the large room. I was paired with Fiona Loxton, a Gryffindor in my grade. Each table had a pot of tea. At the beginning of class, we were told to drink a cup of tea until only the leaves remained, and we still had our cups nearby. Our professor was speaking to us. She was rather odd-looking, with long unkempt red hair held back in a headband, as well as multicolored robes.

"In this room, you shall explore the noble art of Divination. In this room, you shall discover if you possess the Sight." As she took a step forward, she bumped into the corner of her table, earning a few snickers from several students. However, she smiled and continued. "Hello. I am Professor Trelawney. Together we shall cast ourselves into the future!" Her hands were in the air. "This term, we'll focus on Tasseomancy, the art of reading tea leaves. So please, take the cup of the person sitting opposite you."

I reached over and took Fiona's cup, and she took mine. "The truth lies buried like a sentence deep within a book," continued the professor, "waiting to be read." She stopped in front of Seamus and touched the top of his head. "But first, you must broaden your minds." Seamus eyed her strangely as she stepped away. "First, you must look beyond." From a few feet away, I heard Hermione comment on how this was, "a load of rubbish." Suddenly, Professor Trelawney gestured dramatically at Neville.

"You, boy, is your grandmother quite well?" Neville looked slightly nervous.

"I...I think so." But the professor wasn't convinced.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that. Give me the cup." Dean handed her his cup. After looking inside, she put it down, a look of sorrow on her face. "Pity." Terrified, Neville snatched the cup, while Dean fumbled through his book. I almost felt worried, but I was starting to agree with Hermione. This really didn't seem very believable. "Broaden your minds," continued Trelawney. She turned to Ron and gasped. "Oh! Your aura is pulsing, dear. Are you in the beyond? I think you are." By now, Ron was terrified. Nevertheless, he nodded.

"Sure." While they were talking, I turned to Fiona. I looked inside the cup that I took from her.

"What do I have?" she asked. I flipped through my book.

"Well, this looks a bit like an acorn, which means that you're going to...discover _gold?_" She had an incredulous look on her face. Just then, we heard Trelawney gasp. We turned to see that she was looking at Harry in terror.

"Oh, my dear boy. My dear, you have...the Grim." There were a few gasps.

"The Grin?" asked Seamus. "What's the Grin?"

"Not the Grin, you idiot. The **Grim**." Bem, a Gryffindor boy from Nigeria, suddenly spoke up, reading from his book. "'Taking form of a giant spectral dog. It's among the darkest omens in our world. It's an omen...of death.'" This sent chills up my spine. _I really hope that this is all just rubbish._

After several minutes, Trelawney cleared her throat.

"Well, children, go on. Take the cup of the person opposite you, and cast yourself into your future." Fiona looked inside the cup that she took from me. Flipping through her book, she suddenly stopped.

"What do you see?" She looked confused as she glanced at me.

"Well, I think-"

"My dear!" Fiona jumped as the professor rushed over to our table. "Your eyes have a mystical fog about them!" _Yeah,_ I thought, _because she's all fogged up from this nonsense._ Terrified, Fiona stared at Trelawney. "Quick! Tell me what bodes for Miss Ravensdale!" Looking back down at the book, Fiona studied the symbols.

"Well," she said in a shaky voice, "here's a cross, which means suffering." My eyes went wide. "And I think this is a falcon." She pointed inside the cup. "And that says something about a deadly enemy." _Oh, that's just lovely_. "But here, this looks like a sun." The professor looked inside the cup and nodded her approval. "And that means happiness. So...I'm not quite sure how to word that." Trelawney beckoned Fiona with her hands.

"You're on the right track, my child. The order in which the symbols appear is the order in which they will occur. So..."

"So," Fiona said tentatively, "Lacey's going to suffer, she's going to encounter a deadly enemy, and she's going to be..._happy?_" That was the strangest omen I had ever heard. Why on _**earth**_ would I be happy after suffering and meeting a deadly enemy? Unless, perhaps, I turned to suicide...

"Very good, my dear!" She then turned to me. "What a future you have ahead of you. Poor child." With a look of pity, she reached out to stroke my cheek as I stood there awkwardly. _So far, this class scares me out of my wits._

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Later that day, it was time for Care of Magical Creatures. I was hoping that it would be better than Divination was. I was walking across the Covered Bridge when I heard a familiar voice come up next to me.

"Hey, Lacey." I looked to my side and smiled.

"Hello, Neville."

"What'd you think of Divination?"

"A bit terrifying." Neville nodded.

"Yeah, same here. I just got back from the owlry. I sent Gran a quick note to see if she's okay, just in case."

"Well, that's smart." He looked at my face for a few moments.

"Don't look too far into what your fortune was. Trelawney seems a bit...loopy, after all." I nodded.

"I certainly hope so." Soon, we were all in front of Hagrid's hut. He stood on his top step and spoke to us.

"That's it! Come on, now, come closer. Less talking, if you don't mind." He pointed at two Hufflepuff girls that were whispering to each other, and they piped right down. Hagrid smiled at us. "I've got a real treat for you today. A great lesson. So follow me." He climbed down off the step and started leading us into the Forbidden Forest. Neville stuck close to me as we were walking.

"Where do you think he's taking us?" he whispered. I shrugged. After a few minutes of walking, we came to this foot-high stone wall. Hagrid stepped over a stooped gap at the top of it, and the rest of us followed.

"Right, you lot. Less chattering. Form a group over there." He pointed to a mount of grey stones. "And open your books to page 49." I was about to ask him how to open our books, but someone else was too quick.

"Exactly how do we _**do**_ that?" The disgust was evident in Malfoy's voice. But Hagrid didn't pay it any mind.

"Just stroke the spine, of course. _Goodness_ me." He spoke to Malfoy like he was a child. I couldn't help but smile. I stopped walking for a moment and stroked the furry spine of my book. I heard a strange insect-like sound, almost like a purr. However, true to Hagrid's word, the book relaxed and allowed me to open it. Seconds later, I heard a growl and yelling. I turned to see that Neville was on the ground, his textbook snapping at him furiously. I heard Malfoy snicker.

"Don't be such a wimp, Longbottom," he said. I almost turned to say something, but then, Neville started to get up.

"I'm okay," he breathed. "I'm okay." Suddenly, the book attacked him again, and he fell backwards. Sighing nervously, I approached him and took out my wand. I didn't know which spell to use, though.

"Neville, stroke the spine!" He reached toward it, but it nearly bit a finger off.

"_Trying!_" Finally, he was able to wrestle the book to the ground and rub his fingers down the spine. After a few moments, the book was calm. Neville picked it up and got to his feet. The front of his robe was shredded, revealing the white shirt beneath.

"You okay?" He looked down at himself and back at me.

"I think so." As we walked back over to where everyone else was, I saw that Malfoy and a few of his friends were teasing Harry about something. We reached the stone structure as Hermione was leading Harry away. Ron took one look at Neville and shook his head.

"You're supposed to stroke it," he said, smiling. Trying to act normal, Neville nodded and scoffed.

"Yeah," he said, like nothing was wrong. I couldn't help but smile. Just then, Hagrid cleared his throat to get our attention. I glanced over at him as he did a singsong-like "da da-da-da." What I saw nearly caused me to collapse.

Standing a few yards away from Hagrid was an extraordinary creature. It seemed to be a giant gray eagle or falcon, with front feet that looked like the legs of a chicken (except with sharp-looking talons). But then I saw that it was a horse from the torso down. The thing that amazed me the most were the creature's giant wings. I felt my mouth curve into a smile. _Whatever this thing is,_ I thought, _it's amazing!_

"Isn't he beautiful?" said Hagrid proudly. He threw what I think was a dead ferret at the creature, and it caught it in its massive beak. "Say hello to Buckbeak."

"Hagrid," asked Ron in awe. "Exactly what is that?"

"That, Ron, is a hippogriff," said Hagrid, walking towards us. "First thing you wanna know about hippogriffs is that they're very proud creatures. Very easily offended." He raised his finger in warning. "You do not want to insult a hippogriff. It may just be the last thing you ever do." I felt a bit scared for a moment, but I had no intention of insulting Buckbeak. He was simply incredible.

"Now," continued Hagrid, "who'd like to come and say hello?" I considered it for a moment, but I was drawn back by the retreating crowd. Even Neville ducked down to avoid being chosen. However, I grinned when I saw that Harry didn't back away. "Well done, Harry," Hagrid said. "Well done." Harry looked around nervously, but eyed the hippogriff. "Come on now."

Harry started to move forward a bit, and Ron beckoned him on by giving him a small push. "Now, you have to let him make the first move. It's only polite. So step up. Give him a nice bow. Then you wait and see if he bows back." Harry took one more step. "If he does, you can go and touch him. If not..." There was an awkward silence. "Well, we'll get to that later." Beside me, Neville got up from where he was crouching.

"Is Harry _mad?_" he whispered.

"Shh!" It was a very tense moment. When Harry bowed, Buckbeak screeched for a moment. Then, after a few moments, he bowed back. Hagrid threw him another ferret.

"Right," said Hagrid. "I think you can go and pat him now." We all watched as Harry moved towards the giant creature very slowly. Suddenly, I felt Neville crash into me from the side.

"Ouch!" He turned and saw me.

"Sorry, Lacey," he said quietly.

"Buckbeak's not going to hurt you, Neville," I whispered. Neville shook his head.

"No, it's not that." I looked over at where Neville was standing before he moved. Malfoy and his friends were standing there, snickering at Harry. I looked at Neville.

"You didn't have to move. You were there first."

"I know, but..." He was interrupted by the sound of loud clapping. I looked up to see that Harry was successfully patting Buckbeak's face.

"Well done!" said Hagrid happily. "Well done, Harry! Well done!" Neville, Hermione, Ron, myself, and most of the others started clapping as well. Needless to say, none of the Slytherins clapped. "I think he may let you ride him now," Hagrid said, stepping towards Buckbeak. Harry looked up at Hagrid, his eyes widening.

"What?" With that, Hagrid picked Harry up and lifted him onto Buckbeak's back, in spite of Harry's protests. He then swatted the creature's hide, and he started running with Harry still on him. Suddenly, Buckbeak spread his wings and took flight, causing Harry to cry out in alarm. We all ran after them, and stopped right where they took off.

"Blimey!" They were so high up; I couldn't even see them anymore. Then, behind me, Malfoy opened his mouth again.

"This is rubbish. My father didn't send me to school to see that git ride mutant ponies." His friends snickered. I frowned.

"And we don't come to school to see ferrets like you whine about everything," I muttered. Neville smiled, but that smile quickly turned into a frown as he glanced past me. Following his gaze, I turned around to see that Malfoy was looking right at me.

"What was that, Ravensdale? I didn't quite hear that terrified mousy voice of yours." After listening to more snickering for a few moments, I took a step towards him.

"No? Well, let me repeat myself." I crossed my arms. "We don't come to school to see **ferrets** like **you** whine about everything." Everyone except the Slytherins chuckled loudly. Malfoy glared at me dangerously and stepped forward. The Slytherins started muttering about a fight.

"You'll pay for that, you dirty _quarterling_." That was it. I thrust my hand into my pocket to retrieve my wand; he did the same. I was about to hex him when a loud voice boomed over us.

"**All right!**" Hagrid looked down at Malfoy, then at me. "Wands away, **both** of you!" With a last glare at Malfoy, I put away my wand. He did the same. "Now, I'll not have any bickering on the first day of class. You hear?" Hagrid gave us each a long stare and then walked back over to where he was standing. I backed away from Malfoy and stepped towards the Gryffindors. Neville gave me a sympathetic look. I smiled, as did he.

A few minutes later, a great shadow loomed over us. I looked up to see that Harry and Buckbeak were back. The hippogriff landed swiftly, and Harry slid down off of him. Hagrid started clapping again, as did most of us.

"Well done, Harry!" said Hagrid. "And well done, Buckbeak!" I smiled as I saw Hagrid bend over and say something to Harry. Glancing over at Buckbeak, I was happy to see him looking so proud, so grand. Suddenly, Malfoy shoved a few people out of his way and sauntered over to Buckbeak.

"You're not dangerous at all, are you? You big ugly brute." The next few moments were chaos. Buckbeak screeched furiously and reared up on his back legs. Hagrid shouted at Malfoy to get back. I felt myself get dragged backwards by the swarm of panicked students. Once I was able to look back, I saw that Malfoy was rolling on the ground, clutching his arm.

"Oh! It's killed me! It's killed me!" He looked pathetic. Hagrid stood over him and tried to calm him. Then, Hermione stepped forward in haste.

"**Hagrid!** He needs to be taken to the hospital." Hagrid nodded.

"I'm the teacher. I'll do it." With that, he picked up the squealing boy and started walking out of the forest.

"You're gonna pay for this," Malfoy muttered.

"Class dismissed!" said Hagrid, ignoring him.

"You and your bloody chicken!" I was glad when they were finally out of ear shot. Looking over at Harry, I saw him patting Buckbeak's face almost reassuringly. I felt warm seeing this, but I also felt worried for the hippogriff. _Knowing Malfoy,_ I thought to myself, _he's not going to let this fly without causing more trouble._

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_**I hope you enjoyed this!**_


	4. Taking a Stand

_**Read on, everyone! **_

**Cookie05-**** Thanks! =D**

**0ooooooooooooo0**

"Talking stops **now**." The next day, we had our first Potions class of the year. You can only imagine how happy we were to be back. Professor Snape folded his arms across his chest and stood at the head of the class.

"I don't know what any of you did over the summer, what relative you visited or what childish things you participated in. But you are back at Hogwarts now, and I will not tolerate any nonsense from _any_ of you." I glanced down. _Nice to see __**you**__ again too, Professor._ Snape started walking around the room very slowly. "This year, any daydreaming or tomfoolery will be the stepping stones to your failure in this class. You will need _complete_ concentration in order to succeed."

I rolled my eyes. _I don't know __**why**__ this man thinks that scaring us out of our wits is going to make us succeed._ I glanced over at Neville, who was sitting next to me at the table. He glanced back at me fearfully. Confused, I glanced to my right and saw what he was afraid of. Snape was looming over me. He stared down at me with condescension.

"Judging by your lack of seriousness, **you** seem to be _quite_ anxious to do poorly, Miss Ravensdale." I heard a snicker, and glanced over at Malfoy, whose arm was in a sling. He twitched his eyebrows at me and sneered. Snape walked back up to the head of the class. "Now, to those of you who have **some** sense of knowledge at all," he said, eyeing me, "you are to brew a Shrinking Solution today." There were quiet groans from around the class. "The recipe is on page 29 in your books. If brewed correctly, this potion will cause the drinker to decrease in age and size. You have one hour."

Everyone started scrambling for their ingredients. Staring at the recipe, I took deep breaths. The complicated procedure didn't do much to make me less angry than I already was. _That awful man! I can't believe he singled me out like that!_ Still, I knew that if I sat there moping, I'd be giving him just what he wanted. I smirked to myself as I gathered my ingredients and lit the flame beneath my cauldron. _I'll show him how much knowledge I have._

Fifty minutes later, I was completely stuck. The recipe said that the brew should have been green by the half-hour point, but the liquid in my cauldron was a bright purple color. Looking over the instructions to see what I did wrong, I heard Neville groan next to me.

"What's the matter?" I whispered. He pointed inside his cauldron.

"I think I did something wrong..." His potion was orange. I smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry, I did something wrong, too." I moved closer to him and read the instructions. "Let's see... I know I got the daisy roots right."

"So did I." I nodded and kept reading.

"And the sliced caterpillars?" He nodded. "And..." As I looked at the recipe, it finally hit me. "Oh, **no!** I forgot to put in the rat spleen!"

"Oh, I remember putting in a few of those." I looked at him.

"A _few?_" He nodded.

"Yeah."

"Neville, it only called for **one**." After pondering for a moment, Neville smacked his forehead and groaned.

"Aaah! And I think I put in too much leech juice too!" I looked at Neville and saw that he was close to tears. I looked at my potion, and then at his. _Oh, I don't want to shrink anyways!_ Thinking fast, I patted his shoulder.

"Don't worry. Maybe we can add more of the other ingredients so it balances out." However, before I could lay a finger on the jar of peeled shrivelfig, the professor spoke again.

"Time's up." Exhaling, I looked at Neville. He looked terrified. As Snape approached one of the Ravenclaw tables, I squeezed Neville's hand.

"It'll be okay," I whispered, letting go of his hand. He looked back at me and nodded tentatively. Waiting for Snape to arrive at our table was like waiting to be beheaded. I certainly wanted my head to be chopped off after what happened when he **did** get there. He checked Dean first, then Seamus. I think that he always saved Neville and me for last to make examples of us...

"Of course," he said, sneering down at my potion. I took deep breaths to keep calm. _Relax. Don't let him get to you._ But what occurred when he reached Neville was the straw that broke the camel's back. "What on _earth_ does it take to get through your skull, Longbottom?" he said, looking at Neville's potion. "One might be shocked that two years in my class might have actually taught you something, but in **your** case, it's not that big of a surprise." The Slytherins didn't even try to stifle their chuckles at this comment. Neville looked down, and I could see how red his face was. I ached for him. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to hex Snape something terrible.

When I was eight, and still went to the Muggle school, I had a teacher, Mr. Dewhurst, who disliked me because of my quirkiness and my mistakes. He would always single me out in front of the whole class, and they would always laugh. And I would never say anything. Mum had told me that if I didn't react, Mr. Dewhurst would get bored and stop. But he never did. Whenever he humiliated me, I wanted to stand up for myself, to scream at him and tell him off for being the horrid man that he was, but I never got the nerve to do it. But seeing Neville exactly where I was all those years back made me regret not standing up and denouncing Mr. Dewhurst like I should have done.

With a final look of disgust, Snape started walking towards another table. As soon as I thought he was out of earshot, I leaned toward Neville.

"Neville," I whispered. After a few seconds, he looked up at me. I could see the tears in his eyes, but he wouldn't let them fall. "Don't let him break you. You're a thousands times more than a greasy old git like him could ever hope to be. And don't even think about denying that." Neville smiled at me, and his face became less red. I smiled back. That's what I should have done when I was eight.

"**Psst!**" I looked over at Dean. His eyes were wide open with alarm. _"What?"_ I mouthed. He gestured behind me with his eyes. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Snape had stopped dead in his tracks. Neville looked at me with pure fear as I heard the professor turn back to our table. His footsteps resumed, only this time, they were coming back towards us.

"Miss Ravensdale," Snape drawled, stopping a foot away from where I was sitting, "would you remind _repeating_ what you just said?" After a few moments, I looked away from Neville and up at the professor. He was looking down at me dangerously, daring me to say it. Normally, a smart girl would have said something like, _"Nothing, professor,"_ and Snape would have said, _"Smart choice."_ But I was hardly in the mood for being a smart girl. Throwing away all of my thoughts of keeping my mouth shut, I slowly got up from my seat and stood in front of the professor.

"Not at all," I said, folding my arms. I glanced momentarily at my table. Dean was shaking his head, silently trying to discourage me.

"Lacey, _no!_" Seamus whispered sharply. Finally, I looked at Neville. He was slowly shaking his head at me. _"Don't do it,"_ he mouthed, afraid for me. _"Don't do it!"_ I looked Snape right in the eye.

"I was just telling Neville that he is a thousand times more than a _greasy_...**old.**.._**git**_ like you could ever _dream_ of being." The whole room seemed to freeze, save for a few gasps from a couple of girls. Suddenly glancing behind Snape, I saw Harry looking at me. He flashed the tiniest of smiles at me, and I responded in turn. Snape's expression slowly became more sinister. Strangely enough, I didn't regret what I did at all.

"_**Detention,**_ Miss Ravensdale." A few Gryffindors gasped, but I remained steady. "Every night at seven-thirty for a month, starting tonight." I was careful to not let my expression change, but I felt a little afraid. He turned away from me and sauntered back over to his desk. "Class dismissed," he snapped. Neville and I got out of there in a hurry.

"Lacey!" Neville was beyond shocked. "I can't believe you did that!" He looked terrified, but I could tell that he was happy I did it.

"Me neither." I wasn't even thinking about my punishment.

"But I never wanted you to get in trouble over that," he said, the guilt evident in his face.

"No, it's fine. I'm just glad I didn't lose us any House Points."

"But detentions are supposed to be worse. And it's Snape!" I looked at him reassuringly. Then, as a group of students walked past us, I saw Malfoy grinning evilly at me.

"Good luck tonight, Ravensdale," he said, chuckling with his friends. I shook it off, but deep down, I was a bit afraid of the events of the evening.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Later that day, we filed into the Great Hall for our free period. As soon as I was seated, I took off my black robe so I was just wearing my skirt and my uniform sweater. Neville sat down next to me.

"You okay, Lacey?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I'm just so _hot._ Aren't you?" Neville shrugged, taking off his robe as well. Looking around, I saw that several kids were just in their sweaters and their sweater vests, respectively. It was a legitimate excuse, so I thought the cold sweat I was having could be hidden.

"You're sweating pretty badly."

"I know. I'm terrified." What I had done in Potions class was finally starting to sink in. Even though students were coming up left and right to congratulate me all day, it still didn't change the fact that I was going to pay dearly for talking back to Snape. Suddenly, I felt two people sit down on either side of me, squishing me and crushing poor Neville against another student.

"Congrats, Ravensdale."

"We just heard." I looked at Fred and George Weasley and shook my head.

"Please don't congratulate me," I groaned. "I'm terrified enough as it is."

"Don't worry," Fred said. "My first detention with Snape, he just made me clean a bunch of old cauldrons without magic."

"And he made me sort all of the books in his office _alphabetically_." I looked at both of them.

"Listen, you two, you're really not making me any less worried." Ron chuckled.

"Good, Lace, because those were their easiest detentions." My eyes went wide. Fred rolled his eyes.

"Always ruining our fun." As he and George got up and left, I rested my head in my hands. Neville scooted back next to me and patted my shoulder.

"By the way, Lace, sorry about your detention." I looked at Ron, who looked back at me with a look of pity. I didn't know what to say. "I certainly wouldn't want a detention with Snape. But seriously, what you did was wicked!" Across the table from me, Dean laughed in agreement. Hermione smacked Ron with a textbook.

"Ronald!" She looked at me. "Lacey, I know it's not what you want to hear, but you probably shouldn't have done that."

"_I know,_" I said, not bothering to look up.

"Come on, Hermione," Ron said with a chuckle. I glanced at him, and then my eyes fell on Harry. Looking past Hermione's head, he smiled at me, like he did in the classroom. I could tell that he had wanted to do what I did for a while. The thought made me smile back.

I looked back down at the table in front of me. I tried to convince myself that it wouldn't be too bad, but I couldn't change the fact that I was terrified.

"Don't worry, Lacey," Neville said. I looked at him, and he smiled. After a few seconds, his expression became grim. "But I really didn't mean to get you in trouble."

"You didn't _tell_ me to say it."

"Yeah, but if I hadn't let myself get upset, you wouldn't have-"

"I would've happened sooner or later, Neville." There was a pause as Neville looked down, then back up at me.

"I really appreciate what you said to me, though." I smiled.

"I was only establishing facts." He grinned widely at me. Suddenly, I heard rapid footsteps run behind the bench that we were on.

"He's been sighted! He's been sighted!" Seamus smacked a newspaper down onto the table next to Neville.

"Who?" asked Ron.

"Sirius Black." My heard skipped a beat. Harry and Hermione hopped up. Harry stood next to Seamus, while Hermione sat next to Bem. I looked past Neville at the paper. Sure enough, a picture of Black was on the front page. Hermione examined the article closely.

"Dufftown? That's not far from here." I gasped. Neville looked up at Ron, who was standing above Dean.

"You...you don't think he'd come to Hogwarts, do you?"

"With dementors at every entrance?" asked Dean. Seamus looked at him.

"Dementors? He slipped past them once, hasn't he? Who's to say he won't do it again?"

"That's right," Bem said grimly. "Black could be anywhere. It's like trying to catch smoke. It's like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands." Chills ran down my spine. I started fiddling with my hands. _First a detention, now a madman sighting? Oh, this isn't a bad sign at all..._

**0ooooooooooooooooo0**

_**Let me know what you think!**_


	5. Truth or Taunts?

_**Hello there. Oh my gosh, I am **__**SO SO SO SO SO**__** sorry for the delay. I just started my senior year of high school, and things have been hectic. But enjoy! **_

**Cookie05-**** Thanks again =D**

**TheBlessedChildSuki-**** Aww, thanks! I'm really glad that you enjoy it =D BTW, about your question...it's a VERY good question. I PROMISE it will be answered, but not in **_**this**_** story. (Hint: the **_**next**_** one...) ;)**

**0ooooooooooooooooo0**

"Wand at the ready, Lacey!"

Boggarts. I can't stand them. What I hate most is that they never give their victims a fighting chance. The way they take advantage of people just **sickens** me. After all, who _can_ stand a chance against their worst fears?

Later in the day, after free period, we had our first Defense Against the Dark Arts class of the year. I was actually looking forward to this particular subject, especially after what happened on the train. And for the first time in a while, we had a teacher who actually _knew_ what he was doing. Professor Lupin showed us a Boggart that was locked in a wardrobe. He then proceeded to tell us that by forcing the creature to assume a funny shape, via a special charm that is **excellently** named, one can destroy it.

First up was Neville. His worst fear was Professor Snape; due to my worrying about detention, I wondered if he was mine. But the entire class roared with laughter when Neville made Snape wear Augusta Longbottom's clothes. _Wonderful!_ I thought gleefully. _Detention will fly __**right**__ by!_ Next went Ron. Soon, I was next. After the professor warned me to ready myself, I stepped forward.

"Face your fear," said the professor. Ron's spider, which was wearing roller skates as a result of the charm, instantly started changing. In a matter of seconds, there was a dog-sized mosquito flying in front of me.

My blood instantly ran cold. I hate mosquitoes more than any creature on the face of the planet, with the exception of the monster that killed my sister. Actually, it's because of Voldemort that I detest mosquitoes so much. They're vicious little beasts that suck the life from innocent beings for their own gain, and they don't even seem to mind. And that's exactly what Voldemort did; he took innocent lives to make himself more powerful (and he enjoyed it), and there's nothing more monstrous than that.

Staring at the oversized insect, I raised my wand with a shaky hand, took a breath, and spoke.

"_R-R-Riddikulus!_" In an instant, the mosquito seemed to increase in thickness. Instead of a mosquito, I was now looking at a collection of long colorful balloons twisted in the design of a dragonfly. The class started laughing, and I finally had to giggle a bit.

"Excellent, Lacey!" said Professor Lupin. I moved to the back of the line as Parvati had her turn. Once I came to a stop, I saw that her boggart was a snake. However, it turned into a giant jack-in-the-box a few seconds later. Then it was Harry's turn. He stepped forward, and for a split second, the boggart was a dementor.

"_**Here!**_" Professor Lupin suddenly jumped in front of Harry. The dementor suddenly took the form of the moon hidden behind a few clouds. After a few seconds, he raised his wand. "_Riddikulus!_" The moon turned into a white balloon and flew around the room. Following laughter from several students, the balloon flew back into the mirrored wardrobe from whence it came. Smiling nervously, Lupin turned to us. "Right. Sorry about that. That's enough for today. If you'd all like to collect your books from the back of the class. That's the end of the lesson for today." We made our way to our books as the professor chuckled. "Sorry. Sorry, you can have too much of a good thing." As I walked over to the door, I turned around and looked at Harry. He was staring blankly at the wardrobe. _I wonder why Lupin did that..._

"Lacey?" I felt a hand grasp my shoulder, and turned to see Seamus. "You coming?" After a few moments, I nodded.

"Yes." We left the classroom and started down the hall.

"So, you nervous about tonight?" I looked at Seamus.

"Hmm?" Then, I suddenly remembered my detention. Just the thought made me groan in worry.

"Ah, don't worry, Lace," Seamus said with a small chuckle. "Maybe it won't be too bad."

"Won't be _too bad?_" I muttered. "I'd rather spend the night in Moaning Myrtle's _bathroom_ than have a detention with Snape."

"Well, you'll probably live at any rate." I nodded, but I certainly didn't feel any better. _Judging from what I said to him,_ I thought, _I'll __**wish**__ I was dead by the time Snape's through with me._

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Dinner went by too quickly for me. I was silently hoping that my detention would be canceled, but my prayers went unanswered.

When it was time to make the journey to the dungeon, I was stopped by Neville.

"Lacey, do you want me to wait up for you?" Smiling, I shook my head.

"No, Neville. I'll be fine." Not wanting to make him feel any guiltier, I immediately set off.

Step by step, I walked down the steps to the dungeon. Surprisingly, I found my fear melting away with every step. After all, I was there because I stood up for a friend. And what could be a better reason to get a detention with the scariest teacher in the school? Finally, I reached the door. Reaching up with a shaky hand, I knocked. Mere seconds later, the door opened, revealing Professor Snape.

"Ah," he said with a small smirk. "Come in." He stepped aside, and I slowly walked into the room. When he shut the door behind me and locked it, my heart started to pound wildly. "Go over to the table," he said, pointing to the table in the middle of the room. I complied. After I reached the table, I realized that there was a bin of dead rats on it. _Oh, __**no**__. What's he gonna make me do? _Snape stopped to stare at me from across the table.

"You're going to be doing two jobs for me tonight, Miss Ravensdale. First, as you seemed to be confused about what a rat liver is," he said, ignoring my glare, "you will be removing the liver from each of these rats and putting them into this jar. **Without** magic." My heart sank. Seeing the look on my face, Snape's lips twisted up into a small sneer. "And you will also remove the _tongue_ from each rat, as a future reminder to hold _**yours**_." I felt like screaming at the cruel man, but I didn't dare push my luck.

"Um...alright," I said carefully. "But what am I supposed to use to do these things, Professor?" He reached into a jar nearby and pulled out a scalpel.

"This will do." He dropped it in front of me. My eyes widened as I glanced from the scalpel to the huge bin of rats.

"But, _sir!_ That'll take all **night!**" His expression didn't change.

"Indeed it may. I suppose you should have thought twice before you decided to talk back to a teacher." With a final sneer, he turned around and started walking towards his desk.

"And _you _should've thought twice before _you_ decided to mess with my friend," I muttered in the most quiet of voices. When he stopped walking, I instantly regretted it. _Wrong move, Lace. __**Wrong move!**_ Snape slowly turned back around and came back to the table.

"_Excuse me,_ Miss Ravensdale?" Leaning across the table, he glared at me. It was as if he was daring me to repeat myself. After a few seconds, I looked down.

"Nothing," I muttered.

"That's right," said Snape as he straightened up again. "Perhaps there's hope for you after all. If you're lucky, you've only inherited a small amount of disobedience from your parents." I glanced up at him suddenly. He looked satisfied that he had gotten to me. "Abigail got detention at least once a week. It seemed to rub off on your father." _Don't say anything, Lacey. Keep calm...he wants you to respond..._ "I can't say that it surprised me when they got each other into trouble." I was confused.

"What?" I asked suspiciously. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about your _sister,_" he said with a victorious leer. My heart pounded. Then, after a few moments, he looked as though he hadn't said what he said. "Go on, then." He went back to his desk. Tentatively, I picked up the scalpel and grabbed the first rat. I grimaced as I lowered the blade to the corpse's belly. Even while looking down, I could feel Snape's eyes boring into my head. It was even possible to feel his horrible smirk as my fingers became coated in rat guts.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was about eleven at night when I finally finished. While walking back to the common room, I stopped into the bathroom to wash the grime from my fingers. Barely any of it came off. After what seemed like hours, I was back in the safety of the Gryffindor common room. I was surprised to see who was waiting for me.

"And she's alive!" Fred and George said simultaneously. I barely had time to register the scene before they picked me up by each of my arms, carried me over to the sofa, and sat me down. Neville and Seamus were looking at me from the couch across from me.

"Go on then, Lace," said Fred, sitting down on my right.

"Tell us all the gory details," said George, who sat on my left.

"Did he yell?"

"Hex you?"

"Did you have to scrub the floors?"

"Sort the flasks?"

"_Oy!_" Seamus said, trying to stifle laughter. "Let the poor girl breathe!" _Thank_ _God,_ I thought. Neville looked at me, genuinely worried.

"Are you alright, Lacey?" he asked. "What'd he make you do?" I sighed before answering.

"Well, he made me cut the spleens from a bin full of rats." He grimaced. "He also made me remove their tongues, as a reminder for me to 'hold mine.'" I rolled my eyes at the memory. Neville looked disgusted.

"Oh, you were lucky then," Seamus said. I looked at him.

"How exactly was I lucky?"

"Well, he didn't kill you." _I think I'd prefer it if he did,_ I thought, staring down at my hands. They still had rat blood on them.

"I'm going to bed," I muttered blankly. Getting up, I slowly walked over to the stairwell to the girls' dormitories and climbed up. After I sat down on my bed, Belle came over to me and sat in my lap. Lucky for me, all the girls were sleeping rather than bombarding me with questions.

What Snape said about my parents and Arabella was really bothering me. _What on earth did he mean?_ Belle glanced at me.

"Well," I said to her quietly, "I guess I'll have to write home and find out."

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_**I hope you liked this one! **_

_**Oh, BTW, I have some news~I am going to be very busy with applying to a few colleges (the deadlines are fairly soon), so I have to put this story on a brief hiatus. But I PROMISE, it will not be long before the next chapter is up. Thanks, and I love you all! =D**_


	6. Visiting Hogsmeade

_**Hello again, my dears! I simply couldn't keep you waiting =) I'll try to update as much as I possibly can (from now until my college stuff is done), but not as often as I want to. But for now, here's the next long-awaited chapter! **_

_**Oh, BTW, there's something you should all know. Something **__**big**__** is going to be revealed **__**very**__** soon~not in THIS chapter, but in the near future. The thing is, I literally JUST thought of the idea while writing the last entry. **_

_**I've gone back and edited both **__**OPAT**__** and **__**ONAP**__** to accommodate this change of events. After reading the next few chapters, if you want to go back and check both stories, you'll see where I've tweaked a few parts. Let me know what you think.**_

**Cookie05-** **Thanx =)**

**TheBlessedChildSuki-** **Thanks very much! I'll definitely try to get into the right one (I'm aiming for R.I.T)! =D**

**This Is a Creative Name-** **I really appreciate your praises! I'm certainly looking forward to writing the fourth story (Just between us, I'm trying to finish **_**this**_** one ASAP, because once I get to the fourth, I won't keep having writer's block; everything will just come to me)! And when it comes to Lacey and Neville...you'll just have to wait and see! ;D (BTW, I absolutely LOVE your pen name. It really **_**is**_** creative, I'm dead serious!) :D**

_**Enjoy! **_

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The month that followed seemed to go on for a year. Then again, if time flies when you have fun, it swims in concrete when you're gutting rats for Snape. But finally, the last spleen had been removed, and after another snide warning from the professor to watch my mouth, my detention was over. That night, I treated myself to a Cauldron Cake as a reward. However, I still couldn't forget Snape's comment about my parents "getting each other into trouble." After some thinking, I had decided to wait until Christmas break to ask them about it.

What happened a few days later lifted my spirits greatly. My parents had plenty of great things to say about Hogsmeade Village. Actually, they had their first date in Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop. I had always pretended to vomit whenever they told me the story, but looking back, it was the most romantic first date I had ever heard of.

Upon arriving, a Slytherin seventh-year had tripped Dad. Mum got so angry that she took out her wand and used a Jelly-Legs Jinx on the boy. She always smiled when she recalled the sight of him trying to crawl back to the school. My parents were able to have a very nice date, and shared their first kiss literally seconds before a teacher came in to escort Mum to detention.

I was enveloped by the eager crowd as we made our way to the Clock Tower Courtyard, where Professor McGonagall was waiting to take our permission forms. After a few moments, I was able to reach forward to hand her the parchment. She put her hand up to attract our attention.

"Now, remember, these visits to Hogsmeade village are a privilege. Should your behavior reflect poorly on the school in any way, that privilege shall not be extended again." Harry ran up to the professor, but she held up her hand. "No permission form signed, no visiting the village. That's the rule, Potter." _Oh no,_ I thought. _Did he not get his signed?_

"All those with permission, follow me," said Filch, casting a dirty look at Harry. "Those without, stay put." I watched Harry approach McGonagall, not yet willing to give up. Suddenly, a hand grasped my shoulder.

"You coming, Lace?" I came back to reality.

"Yes, Seamus." Glancing one more time at Harry, I turned and followed the other students.

About ten minutes, we reached the village. I was in awe with the scene. The buildings were beautiful. They were all cottages with roofs shaped like triangles. People were walking up and down the streets everywhere I turned.

"Students! Pay attention, please!" McGonagall, who had caught up with us, addressed the crowd of excited kids. "You are free to walk around the village, but be sure to meet at this very spot in two hours." Then, her mouth curved into a small smile. "Enjoy yourselves."

In an instant, the group dispersed. Neville and I went with Seamus and Dean to Zonko's Joke Shop. It was a neat little place. There were all kinds of gadgets; naturally, Fred and George were in utter heaven.

"Pardon me," said George, squeezing by me with a large bundle of Hiccough Sweets. It was great fun looking around in there, but it eventually got a little crowded. I fought my way through the swarm of people until I was outside again. Neville was behind me in an instant."

"Oh, Neville, you didn't have to leave just because I was."

"No, it's fine," said Neville with a smile. "I was getting squished in there." I chuckled.

"Me too." We walked for a few moments before I noticed a large window on my right. Above it, there was a blue sign that read Golly Jee's Gifts for All Occasions. "Do you want to go in here?" Neville looked up at the sign.

"Sure." I opened the door and we walked in. The walls were completely covered in picture frames lined with multicolored rhinestones. Shelves sported miniature grandfather clocks, music boxes, and so many other things. A thin elderly woman stepped out from behind the counter.

"Hello, dears. How can I help you?" I smiled at her.

"We're just browsing a bit." She smiled back.

"Alright, but if you need help with anything-" Suddenly, I heard a strange sound. I turned to a necklace rack and saw that one of the necklaces was moving. The woman chuckled fondly. "Oh! This necklace seems to have taken a liking to you." She reached out and took the moving necklace off the rack. It was a small turquoise-studded silver dolphin that appeared to be swimming in midair. It squeaked fondly when it turned towards me.

"Wow!" I said, slightly shocked. "That's amazing." Neville looked on, smiling.

"Would you like it, dear? Only eight Galleons." I stared at the necklace. It looked at me and squeaked again. _Hmmm...I don't know...It's really pretty, but...do I really need it? And I don't think I have enough for it..._After a few moments, I shook my head.

"No, thanks. It's beautiful, but..." The woman nodded.

"That's alright." Neville and I headed towards the door. "Enjoy the rest of your day." I smiled and waved.

"Thanks! You too." With that, we were back on the street. Our next stop was Honeyduke's Candy Shop. The instant I stepped inside, I could tell what all the fuss was about. The room was an enormous burst of color. Everywhere I looked, there was something new. It was impossible to choose what to get, so we both got a bag of mixed treats.

"Hey, Lacey?" I looked at Neville as we left the shop. "I heard of this neat herbology shop that's nearby. Do you mind if we go look?" I nodded.

"Sure!" After a few minutes, we were in Dogweed and Deathcap. It was a very strange-looking place. There were vines stretched out across the walls, it smelled of moss, and most of the plants were moving. I had to move away from a tentacled plant that was trying to snag the front of my coat.

"Ooh, watch it, Lacey," said Neville with a small grin. Then, his face changed to one of surprise. "Oh, _wow..._" I followed his gaze and turned around. He was looking at a potted plant that was about seven inches tall. It had a thick stalk, and tangerine-sized bulbs hanging from the base of the leaves. "Do you know what that is?" Neville asked, taking a step towards the plant.

"No."

"It's a _Coronatus Palustris_. It's a really rare species of miniature plants." My eyes widened.

"Wow, you should get it!" Neville put a hand in his coat pocket, but came back empty-handed. His face fell.

"Oh, I forgot. Gran didn't send me with enough pocket money, because I keep losing it." I nodded sympathetically, but I felt really bad. His face had really brightened when he saw that plant. I was about to say something, but Neville beat me to it. "Oh, I almost forgot. I need to run down to Dervish and Banges to get my Remembrall fixed. I...um...accidentally sat on it." I nodded and smiled.

"That's fine. I need to go someplace, too. How about we meet back where McGonagall said to go?"

"Sounds okay. I'll see you." He turned and left the store. I turned to glance at the plant one last time and started walking towards the door. Then, I had a sudden idea. _It's October. I might as well get a head-start on my Christmas shopping._ I walked over to where the cashier was.

"Excuse me, sir. How much does that _Coronatus Palustris_ cost?"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When we got back to the school, everyone was chattering nonstop about Hogsmeade. I'm not ashamed to say that I was one of them. On our way back to our common room, Neville and I were talking on the staircase.

"Were you able to get your Remembrall fixed?" Neville shrugged.

"The man said that he'd have to take a closer look at it, but he told me not to get my hopes up." I frowned.

"That's too bad." It was then that I realized something wasn't quite right. The line in front of us wasn't moving at all. In front of us, Harry, Hermione, and Ron were talking. However, they had suddenly stopped.

"What's going on?" asked Harry. Ron chuckled softly.

"Probably Neville's forgotten the password again," he said. Neville looked annoyed.

"Hey!" Ron turned around suddenly.

"Oh," he said innocently. "You're there." I rolled my eyes. _Boys._ Up at the front of the line, Percy Weasley pushed his way to the common room door.

"Let me through, please. Excuse me! I'm Head Boy!" He made it to the Fat Lady's portrait. "Get back, all of you," he said gravely. "No one is to enter this dormitory until it's been fully searched." Then, Ginny Weasley came down the steps and stopped in front of Harry and Hermione.

"The Fat Lady! She's gone!" Eyes widened, I looked up and saw that the large woman had indeed disappeared from the painting. Where she should have been, there were long gashes in the canvas.

"Oh, my God!" I looked at Neville, who seemed just as terrified.

"D'you think she's dead?"

"Well, how could she be? I mean, she's a painting." The other portraits in the large stairwell were panicking and jittering about. Percy was giving orders to the students. Then, I heard the gruff voice of Mr. Filch. What Percy said next made me a bit less scared than I was at the moment.

"The Headmaster's here." Sure enough, Dumbledore made his way through the crowd and stopped in front of the painting, examining the gashes.

"Mr. Filch," he said, "round up the ghosts. Tell them to search every painting in the castle to find the Fat Lady."

"There's no need for ghosts, professor," Filch said, raising a bony finger to point above. "The Fat Lady's there." In a few seconds, everyone was running up the stairwell, ignoring Percy's orders.

"Mind where you're going! Slow down! You listen! I'm Head Boy!" But nobody was listening. I followed the crowd up the stairs until Dumbledore and Filch stopped in front of a safari portrait.

"Dear lady," Dumbledore said in a soothing voice, "who did this to you?" I heard a small sob, and the Fat Lady ducked out from behind a hippo. She was wearing a hat that was made of grass and cattails.

"Eyes like the devil, he's got, and a soul as dark as his name," she cried. "It's him, headmaster. The one they all talk about. He's here, somewhere in the castle! Sirius Black!" She gave a final terrified cry before ducking back behind the hippo. Dumbledore muttered something to Mr. Filch, and turned to us. "The rest of you, to the Great Hall." In an instant, we all turned and started running down the stairs. My mind was overwhelmed with terror. _Sirius Black is in the castle? What's he going to do?_

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Because of the attack of the Fat Lady, all of the students had to spend the night in the Great Hall for their safety. I worried about Belle, but Percy said that everyone's pets were moved to the headmaster's office and were completely safe.

Sleeping bags had appeared for everyone, and almost all of the students were asleep. However, I couldn't get myself to close my eyes. I was just so overwhelmed with fear. Not fear for myself, but fear for Harry. _What if Black's come to kill him? He may want to finish what he started._ Then, I noticed someone standing above me.

"Miss Ravensdale?" Professor McGonagall whispered. "Go to sleep." I nodded.

"I'm trying," I whispered back, "I just..." She nodded.

"You needn't be afraid, dear," she said, a hint of gentleness in her voice. "If Black is here, we'll find him. In any case, he can't get into this room." After a few moments, I nodded.

"Okay." She walked away, and I rolled over onto my side. _Come on, Lacey. Go to sleep._ My thoughts wandered back to Hogsmeade. I thought of the shops, the Honeydukes sweets, and the dolphin necklace. That made me think of water, which led to me thinking of the lake at home. I tried to imagine floating in the water, relaxed, not a problem in the world. Then, my eyes got heavy...

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_**I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Until next time, whenever that may be...**_


	7. You Don't Know Your Sheep

_**Hello again! Read and relish, my dears!**_

**TheBlessedChildSuki-**** Haha, I love that line too! (Although my favorite is, "Keep up, please, and **_**stay alert!"**_**) Thanks =)**

**american highway flower-**** Thanks so much! I'm really glad you like my stories. I'll definitely do my best to keep improving =D**

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The next day, it was announced that the common room had no danger whatsoever, and we were allowed to return. When I got Belle back, I held onto her like she was going to fly away at any moment.

The Fat Lady was replaced by an armored knight. He was rather full of himself, challenging random people to duels and changing the password six times a day (this drove Neville crazy; he had a habit of forgetting the passwords, and had to keep writing them down).

The excitement soon went away, and we went to classes as usual. I was really looking forward to Defense Against the Dark Arts. When Lupin was around, I felt safe. He really knew what he was doing. However, when the doors opened that day in class, my heart sunk when I saw who walked through them.

Nearly everyone jumped when Snape closed the shutters with a wave of his wand. After reaching the front of the room, he pulled the white board down and turned to face us.

"Turn to page 394," he said, slowly and grimly. Confused, I reached toward my textbook and started flipping through it. As Snape started walking down the aisle, Harry leaned toward him.

"Excuse me, sir." Snape stopped walking. "Where's Professor Lupin?" _My question exactly._

"That's not really your concern, is it, Potter?" He resumed walking. "Suffice it to say that you're professor finds himself incapable of teaching at the present time." He stopped walking as he reached the projector at the back of the room. "Turn to page 394." I heard him tap the projector with his wand, and it immediately turned on, displaying what looked a lot like cave paintings. Behind me, I heard Ron gasp slightly before speaking.

"'Werewolves?'" My eyes widened. _What? We're nowhere near-_

"But sir," said Hermione, finishing my thought, "we've just been learning about red caps and hinkypunks. We're not meant to start nocturnal beasts for weeks."

"Quiet," Snape said in a warning tone.

"When did _she_ come in?" Ron whispered to Harry. "Did you _**see**_ her come in?" Snape made his way back to the white board.

"Now, which one of you can tell me the difference between an Animagus and a werewolf?" I didn't have to look behind me to know that Hermione's hand was in the air. Snape didn't bother to turn around. "No one? How disappointing." That didn't stop Hermione.

"Please, sir. An Animagus is a wizard who _elects_ to turn into an animal. A werewolf has no choice. With each full moon, when he transforms, he no longer remembers who he is. He'd kill his best friend if he crossed his path." A chill went up my spine. "Furthermore, the werewolf only responds to the call of its own kind." Malfoy suddenly imitated a wolf howl, which resulted in snickers from his friends.

"Thank you, Mr. Malfoy," Snape drawled. He started walking in Hermione's direction. "That is the second time you've spoken out of turn, Miss Granger. Are you incapable of restraining yourself or do you take pride in being an insufferable know-it-all?" I turned around to see him stop in front of Hermione. She was looking down, embarrassed by Snape's words. I had an urge to say something, but I held myself back.

"He's got a point, you know," Ron whispered to her.

"Five points from Gryffindor," Snape said. I, along with the rest of the Gryffindors, gasped in shock. "As an antidote to your ignorance, and on my desk by Monday morning, two rolls of parchment on the werewolf, with _particular_ emphasis on **recognizing** it." Now it was Harry's turn to speak.

"Sir, it's Quidditch tomorrow." Like a bat, Snape swooped down and put his hands on either side of Harry's desk.

"Then I suggest you take extra care, Mr. Potter. Loss of limb will not excuse you. Page 394." He slowly got up and continued down the aisle. "The term 'werewolf' is a contraction of the Anglo-Saxon word 'wer,' which means 'man,' and 'wolf.'" I scrambled to get my notebook out. "Werewolf, man-wolf. There are several ways to become a werewolf. They include being given the power of shape-shifting, being bitten by a werewolf..."

I started to tune out for a moment. I was quite angry with Snape's treatment of Hermione, as well as the unreasonable assignment. However, thinking back at the lesson with Mr. Lupin made me smile at the thought of Snape in Augusta Longbottom's clothes. I looked down to try and hide it. Unfortunately, that was exactly when I shouldn't have been smiling.

"Surely you don't find the idea of a rampaging beast _amusing,_ Miss Ravensdale?" asked Snape, stopping right next to me. As I felt all eyes on me, I shook my head.

"Of course not, sir." But he wasn't done.

"Then why were you just attempting to hide your idiotic grin?" I heard Malfoy snicker. Biting back a snide response, I looked up at him.

"It's nothing, professor," I said innocently.

"I strongly suggest that you tell me why you were laughing, Miss Ravensdale. Or would you like another detention?" I was shocked at how far out of proportion he was blowing this, but I knew he was just trying to humiliate me again.

"I was just thinking of a joke someone told me a while ago," I said, trying to think of a good joke.

"And what joke was that?" I looked up at him incredulously.

"Sir..."

"If it was amusing enough to disrupt the class, it must be a good joke. Why don't you **stand up** and tell us?" I almost told him that _**he**_ was the one who had singled me out over a smile and disrupted the class in the first place, but I decided against it. A joke my father had told me over the summer finally came to me. _He'll probably deduct points for this, but it's that or detention._ Hesitantly, I stood up. The Slytherins were loving my humiliation, but to keep calm, I kept my eyes on my fellow Gryffindors.

"Um, well, there was a classroom, you see. The teacher was talking to the kids about mathematics." A few people were confused. "It's a Muggle subject." There were a few nods of understanding, and I chose to ignore the disgusted scoffs of the Slytherins. "Anyways, she turned to a boy named Dennis, and asked him, 'If a dozen sheep are eating grass, and six of them jump over the fence, how many are left?'

"Dennis said, 'None.' The teacher shook her head at him and said that he didn't know his numbers. And he replied with, 'Teacher, you don't know your sheep. When one goes, they all go.'" There was a small pause. Then, Neville started giggling. Seamus soon followed, as did Dean, Ron, Hermione, Harry, and everyone else in the room (except the Slytherins, of course). Snape looked at me, the anger visible in his eyes.

"Another five points from Gryffindor." The chuckles stopped immediately. I sat back in my chair, literally biting my lip to keep from answering back. "I suggest that you wait until you're back in your common room to act stupid." As he walked away, my insides boiled. _One of these days, he's really going to push me to my limit._

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

That night at dinner, I told my friends my real reason for smiling.

"Thank God you didn't say that, Ravensdale," said George.

"You'd have been fried for sure," followed Fred. I looked at them and the rest of the table and frowned seriously.

"I really am sorry I lost us the points, you guys. I had no idea he'd set me up like that." Ron nodded.

"It's fine. Who cares about five points?"

"But I don't know why he went completely out of his way to single you out," said Harry.

"Yes," agreed Hermione. "It's not like you laughed out loud or anything." I nodded and shrugged.

"He just doesn't like me."

"He's just a **git**, is what he is," Seamus said, his mouth full with potatoes. Neville laughed.

"You don't want Snape to hear you and make you gut rats, Seamus," Dean said.

Then, Professor McGonagall walked over to the table. She placed a hand on my shoulder and spoke to me.

"Miss Ravensdale? I heard of what happened with Professor Snape today." I nodded, ashamed of myself. She looked up at the other third-years. "And of all of you laughing." They all nodded hesitantly. I looked up at her, expecting the worst. However, a small smile appeared on her face. "Five points to each of you, for sticking up for a friend." She patted my shoulder and walked back to the teacher's table. Neville turned to me and smiled widely.

"I think that makes up for the five points, Lacey!" I smiled, remembering how he was the first one to laugh.

"Thank you, Neville." He seemed to read my mind.

"Hey, you did it for me, didn't you?" I smiled and chuckled softly. Then, I glanced over at the teacher's table. Snape was looking directly at me. He looked calm, but even from where I was, the anger pierced through me like an arrow. Looking back at my food, I felt the worry brew within me. _Uh-oh. He's got it out for me._

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_**I hope you found this chapter satisfactory! =)**_


	8. Happy Birthday

_**Immerse yourselves in the awesomeness that is Harry Potter, everyone!**_

**TheBlessedChildSuki-**** Yeah! I love McGonagall too! Nothing gets by her =D**

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The next day, it was time for another game of Quidditch. It was raining something horrible outside, but that would never stop anyone. Everyone put on their rain ponchos and made their way to the field.

While I was walking, I heard a voice next to me.

"What'd you think?" I looked to my right. Clad in his maroon Gryffindor poncho, Neville had painted half of his face gold, and the other half to match the poncho.

"Wow, it's great!" I said. "Wish I'd thought to do that."

"It's okay. My gran sent me the paint. I'll let you use some at the next match."

"Okay. Thanks!" We were finally in our respective areas in the pitch. All there was left to do was wait.

In what seemed to rush by like the fastest broomstick, the game was afoot and things were getting intense. We all cheered for our team until our throats went sore. Then, about fifteen minutes in, Harry followed the Snitch out of the field and flew upward to the point where nobody could see him. I didn't worry; the Snitch took Seekers all over the place.

Suddenly, I felt weird. It was as if something was pulling me into darkness.

"You okay, Lace?" asked Dean, looking over at me past Neville.

"I'm fine." But I felt another wave rush over me, and I was immersed in black...

_**Bleeding heavily, Arabella turned her head towards me and whispered something...**_

_** "**_**Avada Kedavra!**_**" There was a blinding flash of green light...**_

"Lacey?" Neville had his hand on my wrist. I opened my eyes and turned towards him.

"Hmm?"

"What's wrong? You look like you're about to faint."

"No, I'm..."

_**"What could he have wanted with her? Why would he do this? My poor daughter..." My mother held me close, and I could feel the vibrations in her chest, her cries of pure agony...**_

_** "I don't know," Dad said, trying to keep calm. "But we'd better tell the Order. This has gone far enough..."**_

"_Lacey!_" Neville had his arms under mine. "You should see Madam Pomfrey." He hoisted me back onto my feet.

"No, I'm fine. I don't know what's-" Then, I heard a wave of gasping from all over the field. I looked to see a red figure falling from the sky. "Oh, _no!_ _Harry!_" He was approaching the ground very quickly. Suddenly, I heard a loud voice.

"_Aresto momentum!" _ Harry suddenly a few feet above the ground, and the Gryffindors jumped off of their brooms and ran toward him. A few seconds later, the Ravenclaw Seeker caught the Snitch, winning the game. I was far too concerned for Harry to care about who won the match. Then, I remembered the night we were on the train, and my heart sunk. _Oh, no..._

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Later, while waiting outside the hospital wing, we learned that Harry had been attacked by a dementor. Dumbledore immediately sent them away when he heard of this.

"Oh," Neville said. "That's probably why you weren't feeling well." I nodded, feeling very worried. Then, Ron ran towards us, carrying something wrapped in a blanket.

"What's that?" I asked. Ron looked like he had committed a murder.

"Harry's broomstick." The crowd of kids immediately stopped muttering. "I found the pieces near the Whomping Willow." I gasped, knowing how much Harry loved that broom.

We told Harry as gently as possible, but he was inconsolable. Only Hermione and Ron remained with him as the rest of us left. That evening, before dinner, I made a decision I was rather hesitant about, but I couldn't _not_ do it. I sat at one of the common room desks, took out a piece of parchment, and started writing.

_ Harry,_

_ I'm really sorry to hear about your broomstick. I know how much it meant to you. However, if you want, you can have my broomstick. I rarely use it, anyways._

_ I hope you feel better,_

_ Lacey_

I gave it to one of the school's spare owls to take to Harry. After dinner, the same owl was waiting for me at the window next to my bed. I opened the window and took the parchment from its beak. Sitting on my bed, I opened the letter.

_Lacey,_

_ It was incredibly kind of you to offer me your broom, but I can't take it. It has nothing to do with you. I just can't imagine flying anything else but my Nimbus 2000. But still, I truly appreciate the offer._

_ Thanks again so much,_

_ Harry_

_ P.S. ~ I hope you're feeling alright as well. Hermione told me what happened._

I smiled, leaning against my pillow. However, I couldn't stop thinking about the recent events. _First the train, then the painting, now the game? These can't be just coincidences. Can they?_

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

After the match, the next month seemed to go by quickly, and rather glumly. Lupin had returned, but he gave no reason for his disappearance. Still, everyone was glad when he said that we didn't have to do Snape's werewolf essay. Before we knew it, it was December.

I really love winter. Sure, it's cold and all, but it's so full of magic. The sight of ice frozen to the trees is absolutely stunning. It looks like small streams of liquid crystals dripped onto them. And the snow just adds to the beauty. It certainly made Hogsmeade look even prettier than it looked already. Also, my birthday is in the wintertime: December 9th.

On that day, Professor Flitwick made small fairies throw glitter on me in celebration. Professor McGonagall told me a spell that would turn any food into birthday cake. Professor Lupin gave me twenty points for being born (All of the Gryffindors cheered, but the Slytherins certainly didn't look happy). And Snape assigned extra homework to do over the Christmas holidays.

But nothing could have compared with what happened that night. After dinner, Neville asked to speak to me in the common room at nine thirty. When I got down there, everyone except for him had gone to bed.

"Hi," he said with a small smile.

"Hi." I sat down next to him on the couch. "What did you want to talk to me about?" He shifted.

"Well, I actually wanted to give you something." I watched as he took something out from next to him. It was a small box wrapped in silver paper with a white sparkly bow on it. "Happy birthday."

"Oh, Neville. You didn't have to get me anything!"

"I wanted to." He handed me the box. "Go on, open it." Hesitantly, I unwrapped the paper and opened the box, wondering what it could be. When I saw what it was, my heart skipped a beat.

"_Neville!_" I reached in and took out the dolphin necklace I saw in Hogsmeade. "_Oh!_ You shouldn't have!" He smiled.

"Do you like it?"

"I love it!" Suddenly, I had an idea. I got up and headed for the stairs. "I'll be right back." Once I was back in my dormitory, I reached under my bed and grabbed Neville's plant. I walked back down the steps and opened to door a crack. "Close your eyes." Neville smiled, but complied.

"Okay." I walked back over to the couch and sat back down.

"Alright, open." Neville opened his eyes, and the moment he saw the plant, he smiled wider than I had ever seen him smile.

"Oh, my...Lacey!" He took the plant and looked at it, as if he was trying to figure out if it was real. "You shouldn't have done this!"

"It's fine! Think of it as an early Christmas present." We sat there, smiling at each other.

"Happy birthday, Lacey."

"Merry Christmas, Neville." The dolphin looked at us and squealed happily, causing us both to start laughing.

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_**Awww, isn't that the sweetest thing ever? The next chapter will be up soon.**_


	9. We Weren't Careful

_**Yeah, I'm **__**really**__** cranking them out now! That's the advantage of time combined with not having to do anything on Friday nights. BTW, that big thing that I said would be revealed...it's in this chapter.**_

_**Enjoy!**_

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Christmas break was finally upon us, and I was back in my house snuggling between my parents on the couch next to the fireplace. I told them all about my friends, Hogsmeade, and about Neville's gift, which was hanging around my neck. Finally, the time came to tell them about my detention.

"You said what?" asked Dad. Mum had to hold back obvious laughter.

"You really shouldn't talk back to a teacher, Lacey."

"I know, but...you should've seen the look on Neville's face." Dad nodded.

"I understand. But you could've gotten in really big trouble."

"I did."

"What'd he do?" Mum asked. I took a breath.

"He gave me detention for a month." Mum looked outraged. "I had to remove the spleens from al least a hundred rats, along with their tongues as a reminder to 'hold mine.'"

"How **dare** he!"

"Abby," Dad said, putting a hand on Mum's shoulder. She nodded. I took a breath. _Now comes the hard part._

"He also...said a few things. About you two." Dad sat up.

"What things?"

"Well, he said that Mum got in trouble a lot, and that it 'rubbed off' on you." I heard Mum exhale slightly, as if to keep herself calm. "He also said something else. It was rather weird." My parents looked at me and beckoned me with their eyes. "He said that he wasn't surprised when you two...'got each other into trouble.'" Dad suddenly looked grim, almost scared. "I asked him what he was talking about, and he said that he was referring to Arabella." Mum closed her eyes. I was instantly worried. "What is it? Did I..."

"No, love," Dad said. "You didn't do anything. It's just that, um..." He looked at Mum, who cleared her throat.

"Lacey," she said, grasping my hand. "When we told you about Arabella, we didn't tell you the complete truth about when she was born." I was very confused now.

"What do you mean?" Mum took a deep breath.

"Okay. The truth is...when we had Arabella, your father and I were still students at Hogwarts." My eyes went wide. _What?_

"So, you hadn't been married?"

"No," Dad said. "This is what happened, sweetheart. Your mum and I had started our seventh year at Hogwarts. One night, around the middle of October, we were celebrating our upcoming graduation in June, and things got a little..." He shifted uncomfortably on the sofa. "Well, we weren't careful. About a month later, we found out that your mother was pregnant." I felt shell-shocked. "Your sister was born on June 11th. Abigail and I married the day after we graduated." I leaned against the couch.

"Lacey," Mum said gently, "we're so so sorry we didn't tell you." I suddenly had a terrible thought.

"Wait...does this mean that you only got married because of Arabella?" Dad shook his head.

"No," he said soothingly. "No, no, no, Lacey. We'd been together for a long time. We were already in love when we found out. If anything, it made us fall even deeper in love." I looked at my parents.

"So, you're not upset that you..."

"Not at all," Mum said. "We were both overjoyed. Granted, it was hard to work while supporting her, but I didn't regret having your sister, not for a **second**. Neither did your father." After thinking about it for a very long time, I nodded. But then, I thought of something.

"Wait. How did Snape even find out about it?" Dad looked at Mum, then back at me.

"Well, I'm not exactly sure, but we think he overheard Abigail tell me about her being pregnant. The only thing we do know is that..."

"He told the headmaster about it," Mum said, not even trying to hide her contempt. "He ruined your father's position as Head Boy." I gasped.

"What?" Dad nodded.

"Yes, I was Head Boy at the beginning of the year. But after the headmaster found out, he had to give the spot to someone else. The other teachers wouldn't even think about letting me remain in the position." He paused and looked at Mum." But that doesn't even matter. It never did. If it meant not seeing Abby every minute of every day, I'd never want to be Head Boy." Mum looked at Dad, and finally smiled. I sat back again.

"So Snape told on you two?" Mum nodded, her frown returning.

"Yes. After he did, he told his friends, and it got around the school. People tormented your father and I, called us names you wouldn't believe." I looked down, feeling something as close to hatred for Snape that I had ever felt. Dad laid his hand on my knee.

"Lacey, it was bad, but we weren't on our own." I looked up at him. "We had friends that were always on our side."

"Who?"

"Well, for one thing, a man called Remus Lupin." My eyes lit up.

"He's one of my professors!"

"Yes," Mum said, smiling again. "He wrote and told us. But yes, him, as well as James Potter and Lily Evans." _Harry's parents!_ "They were very mature for their ages." Dad then frowned. "Then, there was Peter Pettigrew and... Sirius Black." My heart skipped a beat. "Yes," Dad continued. "We knew him. He seemed like such a nice boy at the time." I looked down. _Why does his name keep popping up? Is this supposed to mean something?_

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"_What?_" On the train headed back to school, I had just told Neville what my parents said. "Why would he even want to do that to them?" I shrugged.

"Neither of them really knows. My mum admitted to being a little less than polite to Snape at the time. But she couldn't have done anything to make him pull something like that."

"So you think it was revenge or something?"

"I don't know. I don't know what to think right now." And that was true. My brain was just so screwed up about everything. And it was about to get worse.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

"_No!_ They're going to kill Buckbeak?"

"Yeah," said Harry, nodding glumly. I pushed away my bowl of cereal and turned to him.

"But...they can't! That's cruelty!"

"It is," said Hermione, "but the Ministry won't change the verdict."

"Malfoy's father got everyone's approval after telling them how 'dangerous' Buckbeak is." I suppressed a growl. _Mr. Malfoy __**would**__ do something like that._

"How can they...Why is this..." I couldn't take it anymore. Without a word, I got up from the table and ran to the door.

"Let her go, Neville," I heard Ron say. I was secretly grateful; I needed to be alone. Not even paying attention, I ran down the hallway. I had gone through about two hallways before I crashed into someone who was the absolute last person I wanted to see.

"Watch where you going, you clumsy girl." Snape sneered down at me. "Where are you running in such a hurry?" At that moment, I felt myself snap.

"Why her?" He said nothing. "Why my mother, Snape? Why did you want to ruin her life? And my _father's_ life? Like you try to ruin **all** our lives?"

"How _**dare**_ you speak to me in that tone," he snapped at me. "Don't blame me because your parents chose to paint you a pretty picture of innocence instead of being honest with you." That was it. I drew my wand and pointed it at him.

"_**Take that back!**_" His wand was just out of his pocket when I heard something.

"Stop! Both of you!" Lupin stepped in between me and Snape. "Lacey, put your wand away." I hesitated, glaring at Snape. "**Now.**" I slowly put my wand back in my pocket. He patted my shoulder gently. "You'd better come with me to my office." This was not what Snape wanted to hear.

"She drew her wand against a teacher! Surely you agree that she should be punished." I had never heard him sound so dangerous.

"I don't think so, professor. She's probably just stressed, that's all. I'll see to her." With that, he took me by the shoulder and led me away from the furious professor. When we reached his office, I was still trying to calm myself down. "Easy. Breathe." I sat down on top of a desk, and he sat on the one next to me. After a few minutes, I was breathing normally again. "Now, what was that all about?" I hesitated.

"I don't know...well, I **do** know, but I...I don't know why I got so mad." I looked at him.

"Your parents told you about seventh year, didn't they?" My eyes widened. "I heard what you said to Snape, and it sounded all too familiar." I looked down and nodded. He got off the desk and started pacing.

"They told me you were one of the people that stuck up for them," I said. He stopped pacing.

"Yes. Your parents were very kind to me, Lacey, and to the rest of the Gryffindors. They still are." He smiled, as if he were thinking of a fond memory. He turned to me and smiled. "You should've seen Abby back then. She was quite aggressive when it came to Slytherins. The moment they said or did something wrong..." He chuckled softly and shook his head. I smiled, too. Then, he looked back at me. "It's something I think you inherited from her." I lowered my head, ashamed of myself.

"I'm sorry, professor. I have trouble controlling myself sometimes."

"Well, it's been a rough year for you, Lacey. For everyone." He paused. "Besides, it shows that you care fiercely about your loved ones." I nodded.

"I really do. I can't stand the thought of anybody hurting them."

"I don't blame you." Suddenly, I had a thought.

"Is that why my boggart is a mosquito?" He smiled and nodded.

"Yes." I smiled and looked down again. There was a long silence before Lupin spoke. "Feel better?"

"Yes, sir," I said, smiling.

"Okay. You can go. But listen to me, Lacey." He was suddenly very serious. "You could have been expelled today. Don't **ever** turn your wand against a teacher again." I nodded in all sincerity.

"Yes, sir."

"Alright. Have a good day."

"You too, professor." With that, I got up and left the classroom. I'll never forget how caring Remus Lupin was. Sure, he was very serious, but completely compassionate all the same.

**0oooooooooooooooooooo0**

_**I hoe you enjoyed this chapter. I'll have the next one up ASAP =)**_


	10. Cheerful Revelations

_**Okay everyone! Here's the final chapter. It might be a bit garbled, but I just want to go ahead and wrap up this story. Because frankly, I **__**can't wait**__** to get started on number 4! Stay tuned for the next story, which I'll have up ASAP! (For a small preview summary, see my profile)**_

_**Of Lockets and Gillyweed-**__** Coming soon!**_

**XxxxxxxxxxxxxxX**

**TheBlessedChildSuki-** **Thanks, I'm glad to hear you say that! =D**

**american highway flower-**** You **_**did?**_** Very good thinking, my dear! OMG, and is your birthday seriously the day after Lacey's? AMAZING :D**

**0oooooooooooooooooooo0**

By the time June came, my mind was very inactive. It was hard to feel much, other than emptiness. I couldn't keep myself from thinking about poor Buckbeak. He was the victim of cruel injustice, a misunderstood creature. Every time I heard Malfoy talking about the hippogriff's upcoming execution, I wanted to lunge at him. But that would've been just what he wanted.

On the day that Buckbeak was scheduled to die, I was sitting on my bed, holding Belle against my chest. The blue sky wasn't the least bit visible through the thick clouds. Everything was nothing.

Parvati tried to get me to go to the common room. She said that Neville and a few others were wondering where I was, but I didn't want to see anyone. I barely wanted to see myself.

I didn't eat a bite that day. From morning until the evening, I simply remained on the bed with Belle. Exhaling deeply, I looked over at the picture of my parents, Arabella, and me. Even after all of the months that had passed, I still couldn't believe it. _Why didn't Mum and Dad tell me? Were they trying to shield me from their past, like Snape said?_

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I must have fallen asleep not too long after that. I was stirred when I felt Belle lick my face furiously. Getting up, I rubbed my eyes.

"Belle, what the _devil?_" She was looking at me with urgency in her eyes. "What is it?" At that moment, Parvati ran in.

"Lacey, you have to come downstairs. Something huge has happened!" I immediately got up and followed her down the stairs. Dean, Neville, Seamus, Bem, Ginny, and several others were waiting there.

"Lacey!" Neville ran at me the instant he saw me come in. "Sirius Black is loose again!" I was confused.

"Wasn't he already loose?"

"He had been captured for a little bit," said Bem, "but he got away."

"How?"

"Nobody knows," said Ginny.

"And they're saying that Buckbeak's up and vanished, too," said Dean. My eyes went wide, and I felt the tiniest hint of joy.

"He got away?" I asked, not even trying to hide my smile.

"Yep," said Seamus, smiling back. "I wonder how Malfoy'll stomach that." I started laughing, as did the rest of the kids.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

That afternoon, I went to the hospital wing to visit Ron. I had heard that he, Hermione, and Harry had faced Sirius Black himself, and that Ron had hurt his leg. Turning the corner, I ran right into the wing.

"Ron!" He looked up, as did Harry and Hermione, who were next to him. "You guys! I just heard, are you all okay?" Oddly enough, Harry smiled.

"Yeah. Everyone's fine."

"Really?" Ron asked incredulously. "What about me? Remember? The one who's gonna lose a leg?" Hermione scoffed.

"Ron, your leg's going to be fine." I turned back to Harry.

"What happened?" Harry looked past me to see if anybody was there, and then back to me.

"Lacey, I'm going to tell you something, and you need to promise me that you won't tell a soul." I nodded.

"You have my word."

"We freed Sirius." Before I could react, he stopped me. "He's innocent." Time stopped. _Wait-what?_ I couldn't get any words out.

"Lacey," Hermione said gently, "he's not the one who betrayed Harry's parents. It was Peter Pettigrew."

"Wh...What? But he's dead, isn't he?" Harry shook his head, looking slightly angry.

"No. He escaped."

"It was Scabbers," Ron said suddenly. I was even more confused than before.

"Your **rat?**" Before he could speak, Hermione beat him to it.

"Pettigrew transformed into a rat after he framed Sirius." I began to understand a tiny bit.

As I sat down, they went on to tell me the entire story. Sirius Black saw Pettigrew (as Scabbers) in a newspaper clipping and broke out of Azkaban. Remus helped him after finding out that he was innocent. After Sirius got captured again, Harry and Hermione helped him get away, along with Buckbeak, whom they had also rescued.

After repeating my promise to not tell anybody, I left the hospital wing and headed back to the common room. I was confused, but I also felt very content. Buckbeak was safe, as was Sirius. Even though I had only been aware of his innocence for a few minutes, a small part of me was unable to believe that he was ever guilty. My parents, along with a lot of other people, remembered him as being kind, funny, and even a bit of a troublemaker. _Just like Harry's father_. I smiled.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Mum! Daddy!" I was finally in the grasp of my parents again. As I said good-bye to my friends, we left King's Cross station and went home. We had a nice dinner that consisted of my favorite foods: chicken with mashed potatoes. After dessert, Mum suddenly looked at Dad and gave him a weird smile, which he mirrored back to her.

"What is it?" I asked. Dad looked at me.

"Well," he began, "Mum and I have been talking, and we're both very pleased with how well you did this year. So we decided to get you a little something." I shook my head.

"Dad! You don't need to give me anything." But he was already reaching into his back pocket. He pulled out three slips of paper and handed them to me.

"We're so proud of you, Lacey," Mum said. I looked at the papers in my hand, and as I read them, my eyes went wide. They were tickets to the Quidditch World Cup.

I screamed, unable to contain my happiness. Getting up, I squeezed my parents into a choking hug.

"Thank you **so much! ** I've **always wanted to go!**" For the first time, I forgot about wanting to go back to Hogwarts so soon. I wanted the summer to take its sweet time. _Quidditch World Cup, here I come!_

**0ooooooooooooooooooo0**

_**Well, there you have it. I'm sorry that it was crazy short, but TRUST ME ~ I'll make up for it with the next one. Until then, fare thee well, my dears!**_


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